Ryan on Medicare proposal: 'It's not a voucher'

3/10/13 9:22 AM EDT

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan defended his proposed changes to the Medicare program on Sunday, insisting that his plan does not turn Medicare into a "voucher" as Democrats have charged.

"It's not a voucher — it's premium support, those are very different," the Wisconsin Republican said on "Fox News Sunday."

"A voucher is you go to your mailbox, you get a check and you go buy something. That's not what we're saying," Ryan said.

"We're saying, let's convert Medicare into a system that works like the one I have as a congressman," he said. "Medicare subsidizes your plan based on who you are. Total subsidy for the poor and the sick. Less of a subsidy for wealthy seniors."

Despite a barrage of negative Democratic attacks about his proposed changes to the system, Ryan said ultimately the issue did not hurt the Mitt Romney-Paul Ryan ticket in November.

"I would argue against your premise that we lost this issue during the campaign: We won the senior vote," Ryan said.

"The problem is Medicare is going broke," Ryan said. "Doing it this way -- harnessing the power of choice and competition -- where the senior gets to choose her benefit that's comprehensive is the best way to save Medicare for future generations"